The Norwegian government and its leading defence supplier Kongsberg have signed two contracts with two Ukrainian companies to develop and build low-cost interceptors and uncrewed surface vessels (USVs) inside Ukraine.
Norway will finance the endeavour while Kongsberg establishes a permanent office in Kyiv.
The agreements were made on 22 June, when the Norwegian Defence Minister Tore Sandvik met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Defence Minister Rustem Umerov, and Minister of Strategic Industries Herman Smetanin, according to a Norwegian government release on 27 June.
Zelenskyy noted the increasing number of weapon systems produced in Ukraine for the war effort, an endeavour that comes from the support of foreign partners.
More than 40% of weapons used by the armed forces are produced in Ukraine, he claimed. This surprising portion of production is based, Zelenksyy stated, on the country’s output of drones.
“A new sector of our domestic manufacturing has emerged and [it has] immediately become one of the world’s most advanced – the production of drones of various types,” the president maintained.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalData“We are implementing a systematic effort with partner countries to attract investment in production in Ukraine — billions of dollars of investment are flowing into our production of weapons, equipment, and machinery.”
It is suggested that more than 70,000 businesses and entrepreneurs have already benefitted from Ukraine’s state programmes and foreign partnership agreements.
Interceptors
The newly formed industrial team will design and build new low-cost interceptors for the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS), an air defence system developed between Kongsberg and the US defence prime Raytheon, of which there are around 12 systems deployed to protect Ukraine.
“There is an urgent need to produce more cost-effective air defence missiles in large volumes, to deal with threats from attacking drones,” said Eirik Lie, Kongsberg’s president.
On the night of 28-29 June 2025, Russia conducted its largest drone strike in the war. Ukraine’s Air Force reported that the aggressor launched a total of 537 strike vehicles, including 447 Shahed and decoy drones. Zelenskyy acknowledged that one Ukrainian F-16 fighter pilot died while repelling the strikes.
USVs
Norway has allocated approximately €580m ($685m) in 2025 to support the maritime coalition, co-led with the United Kingdom.
Part of this funding will be used to develop and produce uncrewed surface vessels (USVs), also called drone boats, using Kongsberg weapon stations, with production based in Ukraine.
“Unmanned vessels play a major role in helping Ukraine to defend its territory, and neutralise the Russian Navy in the Black Sea, and with support from our partners, we are ready to deliver the next generation unmanned maritime capabilities,” Lie said.
Ukraine is said to have destroyed around a third of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet.
Stand-off deep strike
Among other things, the two delegations discussed increasing the capacity of Ukraine’s domestic production of long-range weapons, Zelenskyy noted in a statement after the exchange without any further details on this particular weapon. Other European nations have supported the production of Ukraine’s long-range weapons, including Germany, allocating €5bn in May.
Long-range weapons offer deep strike and precision, which have a coveted effect in the modern battlespace as Ukraine has learned in its key strategic objectives to strike military targets deep inside Russia.
“By enabling deep strikes across borders, long-range missiles allow for the projection of strategic force while minimising the exposure of launch platforms to enemy retaliation,” identified GlobalData defence analyst Harshavardhan Dabbiru.
This provides Ukraine, an asymmetric force, with a coveted strategic effect against a much larger adversary.
